Fishing Report This is not really a report but rather somewhat of a Thank You and Good Bye! After 8 1/2 years of guiding full time on Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend, I have decided to call it quits and pursue a different career. Many of you have not only followed my guiding and tournament career from the time I graduated college but also up through getting married and having a baby. I want to thank all of you who booked trips and fished or hunted with me, those of you who sent the nice emails thanking me for the fishing reports, plus those of you who just came up to me to say thanks or hello. I want all of you to know how much I appreciated all the kind words and thoughts. I also want to say thank you to all the sponsors that I have had through these past several years, I couldn't have done it without you. I had the opportunity to meet a lot of great people both through guiding and tournament fishing. God blessed me with many fanastic sunrises, lots of fish and ducks and a wonderfull family. I want to Thank the Lord for being able to make a living doing what I have done, and I want to thank my entire family for supporting me all these year. Thank you to everyone! Now just to let you know, I am not leaving or going anywhere. I am now selling real estate full time for Rayburn Realty just around the corner from the Stump restaurant. If you are looking to buy any property in the lakes area or wanting to sell some, please keep my in mind. You can reach me at the office at 1(800)310-2109. You may see me pop up in a few team tournaments from time to time or duck hunting for fun on the lake. You may even see me post a fishing report every now and then too. Now since this is a fishing report site, I wanted to include a few words about some products that became some of the more important tools in my fishing. These are products that if you do not currently use them, are worth looking into. One of the most recent product lines that I have had the opportunity to work with is Lucky Craft. Their baits are absolutely the best hard baits I have ever come in contact with. They do cost more than many other baits but thier ability to produce will quickly justify the cost. Many of you have probably noticed how often I talk about the Lucky Craft Flat series of crankbaits. The Flat CB MR and Flat CB DR are the best crankbaits I have used. I throw mostly Ghostminnow and American Shad, but there are some great spring time colors and they have just come out with a load of new colors that are sure to be hot. The new LVR-7 and LVR-10 will make you throw away your rat-l-traps, they are awesome. The Pointer 78 jerkbait has won me more money than any other hard bait. From Florida to Texas to Detroit this bait will catch fish when all else fails. The Gunfish95 topwater bait was one of my deadliest baits this year, especially since almost no one was throwing it. This is a must own topwater bait, I use the American Shad color most of the time. Baby Chugbug, My # 1 topwater bait on Rayburn and Toledo since they hit the market. Chrome/blue is the only color I used but I now own a bunch of bone one because the fish ate the chrome off. Stanley Wedge Spinnerbaits (titanium included). The baby wedge was a huge tournament favorite especially on lakes out side of Rayburn and Toledo. Take this spinnerbait and replace the back willow with a gold #4 wedge blade, it is a fish catching machine. White/chart or catawba 1/4oz and 3/8oz Stanley wedge spinnerbaits in the bushes and over the grass did the trick when the blade bite was on. I will take a Stanley Wedge Spinnerbait over any other spinnerbait on the market. (I also hate that they are discontinuing their buzzbait, it was my favorite also) GYCB Senko - fakes just dont cut it. Greenpumpkin/watermelon laminate was my top color choice. Gambler Swebo worms in Greenpumpkin, sourgrape, junebug and redbug are by far the best wacky worm on the market. I promise you will catch more fish on them and not loose as many compared to any other straight tailed worm. Baby brush hog on a carolina rig. Green pumpkin with the tail died chart. Its a killer. Bass Assasins in Arkansas shiner and super flukes in smokin shad, big producers especially on the Bend. Fishing line called "T Line" sold at Tri Lakes Tackle, Awesome fishing line. (monofilament) I used #14 and #17 for most of my baitcasting setups. Power Pro 65# moss green on all my flipping and pitching rods. Grass, bushes, stumps, docks, it did not matter. That stuff rocks. Shimano Reels- simply the best Castaway Rods, great rod and I am still using ones that I bought over 10yrs ago. Fished over 200 days a year and abused the entire time and they are still going. Lowrance X-15. My baby on board. A big thanks to Terry's Marine in Nacogdoches for all their support over the years and to Jasper Outboards for getting me out of some tight jams in a hurry. Some of the stuff listed above where sponsors and many where not, but I used all of them on a regular basis. My former clients can verify that. I will also be selling a series of 4 maps sold as a package. These maps will cover spring, summer, fall, and winter. They will be marked in detail and will include GPS cordinates as well as written instuction on how to fish spots, when to fish them, and what baits to use on them. I am going to limit the the selling of these maps to 20 packages. I will sell the 4 map series for $300. These maps will show all my best guide and tournament producing spots. They can easily pay for themselves in one tournament year. email me at allman@jas.net or call me if your interested in buying a package. After the 20th package is gone, that will be it. Thanks again and God Bless everyone, have a Merry Christmas. Shane Allman Fish and Fowl Guide Service